Photos courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture
June 19,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, its that time of the year again for all gardeners when you may find a little poison ivy growing in your garden , So we posted from the CDC away to identify these poisonous plants.
POISONOUS PLANTS (lead photo)
Plant Identification
The old saying “Leaves of three, Let it be!” is a helpful reminder for identifying poison ivy and oak, but not poison sumac which usually has clusters of 7-13 leaves. Even poison ivy and poison oak may have more than three leaves and their form may vary greatly depending upon the exact species encountered, the local environment, and the season. Being able to identify local varieties of these poisonous plants throughout the seasons and differentiating them from common nonpoisonous look-a-likes are the major keys to avoiding exposure.
Poison Ivy
Eastern poison ivy is typically a hairy, ropelike vine with three shiny green (or red in the fall) leaves budding from one small stem
Western poison ivy is typically a low shrub with three leaves that does not form a climbing vine
May have yellow or green flowers and white to green-yellow or amber berries
Poison Oak
Photos courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture
Typically a shrub with leaves of three, similar to poison ivy
Pacific poison oak may be vine-like
May have yellow or green flowers and clusters of green-yellow or white berries
Poison Sumac
Photos courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture
Woody shrub that has stems that contain 7-13 leaves arranged in pairs
May have glossy, pale yellow, or cream-colored berries